Kalpathi Ganpathi Subramanyan was born on 15th February, 1924, in Kuthuparambu in North Kerala. In 1944, Subramanyan went to Kala Bhavan, Santiniketan, to study under the apprenticeship of Benodebehari Mukherjee, Nandalal Bose and Ramkinkar Baij. He then in 1955 under the British Council Research Fellowship, went to Slade School of Art at the University of London (where he developed a strong inclination towards printmaking) Subramanayan was known among his contemporaries and peers for his familiarity and his ability to work with diverse media such as iron sheets, watercolour, gouache, oil, acrylic, relief murals on panels, fabrics and terracotta.

These qualities were nurtured by him through an invigorating study of the works of Ananda Coomarswamy, known for advocating cultural resurgence in the post-independence era and instilling pride in the country's heritage. The larger cultural perspective (depicted) in his work suggests the contemporary life and reality that surrounded him. His work also suggests insightful links with the European context of modernism with an added awareness of the varied legacies of Indian tradition and the complexities of the Indian present; and is further enriched through his understanding of other performing arts.

Subramanyan taught as a Professor in painting in Faculty of Fine Arts, Baroda and also served as their Dean from 1968-74. He went back to teach in Kala Bhavan, Santiniketan in the Painting Department in 1980. In 1989, he was designated as a Professor Emeritus of Visva Bharati. Subramanyan's work has travelled and exhibited in solo shows as well as in joint ventures all over the world. Subramanyan has authored many books on art and also illustrated and authored fictional stories for children. K. G. Subramanyan was honoured with Padma Vibhushan in 2012, Padma Bhushan in 2006 and Padma Shri in 1975 by the President of India.

Subramanyan’s art reflects upon his various encounters with different art mediums and the practices of the west along with incorporating elements from vernacular art. In the above painting, the artist has depicted two standing figures in a grid, rendered with multiple perspectives.

Subramanyan's work often alludes to a cubist idiom.

K.G Subramanyan, one of the most versatile modern artists of India rethought the possibilities of the modern in the Indian context. In art he gave the human figure a new dimension, based on the dynamics of synthetic cubism. The subject of his art encompasses various themes ranging from his surroundings to still life to unusual subjects like studio, all painted in a sombre colour palette.

His figures and backgrounds are modest yet vivid, inspired by the rich resources of myth, memory and tradition, tempered with wit and eroticism.